Faith, Beauty, and Devotion: Medieval, Renaissance and Baroque Paintings at the Saladrigas Gallery, Belen Jesuit Preparatory School
The largest exhibition of art from the Medieval, Renaissance, and Baroque Periods from a private art collection in Florence is heading to Miami this fall. Faith, Beauty, and Devotion: Medieval, Renaissance, and Baroque Paintings is being organized by Federico Gandolfi Vannini, owner of Frascione Arte and his wife Daisy Diaz as the Cultural Director of the Gallery. The couple will work closely alongside Sylvie Daubar-San Juan, Humanities Department Chairperson and Director of the Olga M. & Carlos A. Saladrigas Art Gallery at Belen Jesuit Preparatory School.
Daisy is a native South Floridian. Federico is a fourth-generation art dealer who was born in Firenze (Florence). The family’s art collection dates to 1893 in Pizzofalcone, Naples with Enrico Frascione, Federico’s great-grandfather. The family moved their art collection to Firenze in the 1930s.
“This collection from Italy, now arriving in America for the first time, is the embodiment of our family’s constant and passionate pursuit of representations of beauty and history,” comments Vannini. “Belen Jesuit, with its tradition of faith, is the ideal setting to highlight the intrinsic meaning of the work of art: its Divine message.” The Frascione Fine Art Collection was founded in 1893 by Enrico Frascione, Vannini’s great-grandfather.
Dates and Programming
Guests will encounter works of art tracing the Western canon of art history from the 13th to the 17th centuries. In addition to the exhibition, visitors can anticipate a robust schedule of programming such as lectures, panels, dinners, and both small and large gatherings.
About Frascione Arte (Florence)
Frascione Arte is located on Via Maggio (Oltrarno District), in Firenze and known historically as the city’s most important commercial artery when the Medici family transferred their court to the Palazzo Pitti in the 16th Century. The gallery is steps away from Piazza Pitti and lavish Boboli Gardens, Ponte Vecchio, Duomo, Uffizi Gallery, and other key cultural hubs in Florence.
Art lovers will welcome a glimpse of “the center of the Renaissance” in Miami. Additionally, Vannini and Diaz offer a wealth of knowledge and insights that expose the hidden mysteries behind meticulously preserved paintings that have selectively transferred hands from the original patrons to private collectors and museums in Europe, East Asia, and the United States.
“In a cultural landscape dominated by contemporary art, this historic exhibition will provide a rare opportunity to view works by European masters such as Venetian painter Tintoretto, and Baroque artist Peter Paul Rubens,” says Daubar-San Juan, who will oversee the curation of 30 historically significant artworks loaned by Frascione Arte to Belen Jesuit.
30 Paintings from the 14th to 17th Centuries
Faith, Beauty, and Devotion will include both sacred and secular artworks from Italian and Flemish Masters, including among others:
- Umbrian master close to Rinaldo di Ranuccio (c. 1300)
- Tintoretto (full name Jacopo Robusti; 1518 – 1594)
- Circle of Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio (Italian, 1562-1609)
- Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640)
- Valerio Castello (1624-1659)
Christ Healing the Sick
ca. 1610
ca. 1575-1580
ca. 1616
“We are honored to host such an impressive collection of art at Belen Jesuit,” said Fr. Guillermo M. García-Tuñón, S.J., President of Belen Jesuit Preparatory School. “From the perspective of an educator, this is an exciting opportunity for our students to see works of art in person. From an art aficionado perspective, I’m incredibly excited to see firsthand not only the religious art that will be part of this exhibition but the other paintings as well. We are fortunate to have the Olga & Carlos Saladrigas Art Gallery on our campus and look forward to welcoming the community to see this fantastic exhibition.”
About Belen Jesuit Preparatory School
The Jesuits founded Belen Jesuit Preparatory School in 1854 in Havana, Cuba. In 1961, when the new political regime confiscated Belen and all private schools, the school was re-established in Miami that same year and has grown over the last five decades. Currently, the enrollment is nearly 1,400 male students in grades 6 to 12 and over seven thousand alumni. The Ignatian Center for the Arts includes the 665-seat, state-of-the-art Ophelia & Juan Js. Roca Theater and the 3,200 square-foot Olga M. & Carlos A. Saladrigas Art Gallery. The Saladrigas Gallery displays several professionally curated exhibits annually, a young artists exhibit, a Belen community art show, and numerous other projects.
Exhibition Information
Faith, Beauty, and Devotion: Medieval, Renaissance and Baroque Paintings
Olga M. & Carlos A. Saladrigas Art Gallery at Belen Jesuit Preparatory School
September 16 until mid-December through Art Basel Miami
500 SW 127 Avenue, Miami, FL 33184
www.belenjesuit.org/exhibition | @BelenJesuit
